


Shopping with Superheroes

by littlechivalry



Category: Captain America - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: AU, Gen, Grocery Shopping
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-03
Updated: 2017-02-13
Packaged: 2018-05-04 17:14:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,797
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5342030
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littlechivalry/pseuds/littlechivalry
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sam Wilson loves grocery shopping, looks at it like a break, a chance to catch his breath.  That didn't change after he moved into the Avenger's Tower.  The only difference now is that when he goes shopping, he has company.</p>
<p>Each chapter features Sam Wilson and a different Avenger/superhero.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Clint Barton

Sam Wilson loved grocery shopping. Had done since he was a kid going to the store with his mother. He went once a week and tried to make an event of it, grabbing a coffee from the kiosk in front of the store and wandering up and down the aisles. He would check out the new products and send pictures of the best looking or the strangest to his sister.

 

Some weeks it was the only break he had.

 

“Can I ride in the cart?”

 

This week there was Clint.

 

The archer had been in the kitchen when Sam grabbed the list off of the fridge and when the other man trailed along Sam figured he had company.

 

Annoying grabby-handed hungry company.

 

“You know we have to pay for that right?”

 

Clint mumbled something agreeing around a chunk of French bread the size of his fist.

 

They made their way through the store, Sam ticking things off of his list with one hand and corralling the wayward Hawkeye with the other.

 

“Two boxes bran flakes for Steve, one box of Frosted Flakes for Thor, granola mix for Bruce, and –Put the sugar bombs back.”

 

*

 

“Two bags of apples, one bunch of bananas-small- because Steve gets weird about them, one pound of—“

 

“Wanna see me juggle these oranges?”

 

*

 

“Damn, really? Four bags of frozen fries? Okay.”

 

“It’s cold in here.”

 

“I told you not to sit in the cart. Now move those off of your lap, I need you to hold the turkey.”

 

*

 

It took twice as long as usual and Sam was exhausted but he had also enjoyed this trip more than he had in a while. The ride back to the Tower was calm and the car was redolent with the scent of fresh baked bread.

 

“This was nice.”

 

Clint’s voice was peaceful in a way Sam rarely heard. He looked away from the road for a moment to see the other man leaning against the window, eyes closed.

 

Sam looked at the road again. For a minute there he felt like he was interrupting something.

 

“You wanna come with me next time too?”

 

“I might do that.”

 

“Just no riding in the cart. And no eating. And no juggling.”

 

From the corner of his eye Sam could see Clint smiling in the late afternoon sun.

 

“I could have managed those watermelons, you know.”

 

“Yeah,” Sam said. “I know.”


	2. Tony Stark

Chapter 2

Sam twirled the keyring around his finger as he made his way to the garage. Two keys and a keychain that said Keep Calm and Use the Force. According to the note on the fridge next to his shopping list the Audi Allroad’s modifications were finished and it was ready to use.  
Tony had been against buying a ‘dad car’ at first but Steve managed to talk him into it- reminding him he could alter it in almost any way possible up to and including flight. Sam was just glad to have something with a decent amount of storage. Now that Clint had started to come along on the occasional shopping trip it was even harder to fit a superhero team’s worth of groceries in a two seater.  
The door opened smoothly so no surprises there. Sam threw his jacket into the backseat and started her up.  
There were a few strange dials on the dashboard and Sam kept his hands as far away from them as possible. The car might be capable or flight and it might not but it wasn’t something to test in midtown.  
Pulling into the parking lot Sam laughed. He hadn’t tried anything strange but he had noticed that this was maybe the smoothest ride he had ever been in and that was including all of Tony’s modified sports cars. And he had noticed a little more maneuverability than expected.  
Reaching into the backseat for his jacket- autumn was definitely in the air- Sam’s hand closed on something firmer and warmer.  
“Pretty sure you owe me a drink for that, Sunshine.”  
Sam started. “Tony?”  
“Got it in one.”  
“What are you doing in my car?”  
“Your car? Okay, sure. Well, I was working on ‘your’ car,” the other man said, actually making the air quotes. “I finished the last upgrade this morning.” “Now,” Tony said, getting out of the car, “How about you buy me a coffee? A lot of coffee.”  
&  
The two walked toward the store.  
“Tony?”  
“Sunshine?”  
“That was your knee, right?”  
&  
Sam thought his experience shopping with Clint would have prepared him for anything.  
He was wrong.  
&  
Everything they passed ended up in the cart whether it was on the list or not. They had three bags of every potato chip flavor on the shelf and they’d had to get a separate cart for the cookies and cereal aisle.  
Sam tried to keep Tony in sight because every time the other man disappeared he would pop up again carrying another armful of food they. Did. Not. Need.  
Sam wasn’t sure he had ever said ‘No, Tony’ so many times in his life.  
&  
Tony Stark was a billionaire, a superhero, a philanthropist, and a genius engineer and inventor.  
He also watched WAY too many commercials.  
“Hey! They have the new lime dish soap. The new jingle is amazing.”  
He sang for another aisle and a half. Every jingle for every product that had one and a few he made up.  
They were actually kind of catchy which was terrifying.  
&  
Sam had saved produce for last remembering Clint’s fascination with and attempt to juggle with every piece of fruit or vegetable they passed.  
He made his way through the fruit section pretty quickly, not noticing how quiet had become until he was almost done with vegetables. He turned and saw Tony standing in front of the organic produce display.  
“Did you want something? We have room in the cart.” Sam tried to joke. Tony was looking a little too serious.  
The other man reached down and picked up a bundle of vine tomatoes, plump and red.  
“I should... Can we get these?”  
Sam nodded. “Sure. Everyone likes tomatoes. I have a chili recipe that’ll—“  
“I’ll make sauce,” Tony said softly before shaking off his sudden solemnity. “We’re gonna need a few things though. Mind if I grab another cart?”  
“Could I stop you?”  
Tony laughed.  
The two of them walked through the grocery store again. This time there were no commercial jingles or bright artificial colors. Tomatoes. Garlic. Onions. Two cans of tomato paste. Two cans of tomato sauce. Two cans of crushed tomatoes. All San Marzano. Crushed red pepper flake. Steak. Pork Chops. A veal shank. Some hot and sweet Italian sausage. Pasta. Every item picked purposefully. Each vegetable at the peak of perfection. Only the best cuts of meat. A rind of parmesan went into the cart and then they took the food up to the register.  
Tony kept the ingredients for his sauce separate from the rest of the groceries, paying for them separately, and carrying both well-packed bags to the car in silence.  
Sam walked behind him pushing the well-laden cart with the rest of their food.  
&  
They got into the car without speaking, Sam stowing his purchases in the rear of the car while Tony held onto his in the front, setting the bags in the floor in front of him.  
Sam waited until Tony has his seat belt on and they had pulled out of the grocery store parking lot before speaking.  
“You know that chili recipe I was talking about? It’s actually my aunt’s. Prize-winning all over the city. No one could figure out her secret ingredient. She would give each of us nephews and nieces three chances to guess and the person that got it right would get the recipe.”  
Tony smiled. “And you guessed it?”  
“Man, hell no,” Sam answered. “I was six. I guessed red licorice, chocolate, and peanut butter.”  
“So how did you get the recipe?”  
Sam smiled, his eyes focused on the road and his aunt’s voice ringing in his ear. “When she passed she left behind this shoe box full of envelopes, one for each of us. She had cancer you know? Knew she was on her way out and she wanted a legacy so she left each of us a copy of the recipe.”  
“What was the secret ingredient,” Tony asked softly.  
“Time. She picked the best ingredients she could find and then she spent hours tasting and testing and letting everything cook until it was perfectly done. No shortcuts, no easy way out. She said that was the only way to do it right.”  
Tony smiled.  
“That was what my momma said too. Chi due lepri caccia, l'una non piglia, e l'altra lascia. It means something like – if you run after two hares at once you might lose them both. Better to focus on one thing at a time. I always had trouble with that. When she made her sauce it was the only thing she did for hours. No running out to lunches or events, no distractions. She would put on the radio and sit in the kitchen with me.”  
The other man trailed off and Sam let the silence linger as they traveled towards the tower.  
When they arrived Sam pulled the car in smoothly. “You did a great job on this thing,” he said.  
“Of course I did,” Tony replied. “I’m Tony Stark, genius.”  
“Don’t forget playboy,” Sam said, laughing.  
“You better believe it. You were the one that grabbed my… knee.”  
“Not gonna let that go are you?”  
“You better believe it.”  
“…need some help with that sauce? I’m good at patience.”  
“…that would be nice.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wall of text. I am having some formatting issues but I am working on it.


	3. Bruce Banner

“If you want this stuff you’re gonna have to come with me.”  Sam felt like he was begging but it had to be done.  “I don’t even know what a good galangal is supposed to look like.”

Bruce took off his glasses, looking down as he rubbed the lenses against the interior surface of his shirt.  “It’s nothing.  I mean—I don’t need it.”

“According to Natasha if you don’t have galangal then you’re not making tom kha kai and I don’t want to be the reason she doesn’t get the only thing she has ever asked for.  Now are you coming or are you explaining why Natasha doesn’t get her requested birthday dinner.”

Bruce put his glasses back on and looked up, still not meeting Sam’s gaze.  “I guess… if she says so then I have to go.”

“Okay.”

*

The ride to the grocery store was quiet.  Sam had the radio playing low and occasionally hummed along.  He noticed Banner tapping out the beat occasionally.

They pulled into an empty spot at the back of the parking lot with no other cars around.  It was Wednesday morning so Sam didn’t expect to see too many people shopping.

“I can stay in the car,” Bruce offered.

“And I can tell Natasha.”

After a moment of heavy silence the men walked into the grocery store together.  Sam had the regular list so he handed Bruce a handbasket and let him go on to get his groceries before he got started collecting the standard tower menu.

Sam ticked off things on the list and circled back through the produce aisle periodically.  Bruce was shopping, if slowly, each vegetable and herb examined minutely.

There weren’t many other shoppers in the store and most of them were familiar faces so Sam trusted there wouldn’t be any problems and he moved into the center aisles.

“Hey, I think I have everything but –“

“OH MY GOD IT’S THE HULK!”

Sam swayed in place as a solid weight hit his legs.  He braced himself against his shopping cart and looked down to see a kid, no older than six, had wrapped itself around his shins and was staring up at Banner with wide eyes.

He turned to look at Bruce and saw the other man was frozen in place.

The kid piped up again, “I SAW YOU ON TV!  YOU WERE SO AWESOME AND HUGE AND GREEN.  GREEN IS MY FAVORITE COLOR AND YOU’RE THE COOLEST!”

The kid unwrapped herself from Sam’s shins and walked over to Bruce.  Sam let go of the cart in case he needed to intervene and held his breath as the girl came to a stop in front of the other man.

“Are you Doctor Banner?”

Slowly Bruce knelt down until he was eye level with the child.

“I am Doctor Banner.  What’s your name?”

“MY NAME IS LUCY AND MY MOM SAID YOU’RE BADASS!”

With that the little girl threw herself at Bruce wrapping her arms around his neck.

Bruce still had the basket in his hands and Sam stepped forward to remove it, carefully pulling his phone out of his pocket as he did.  This video would be gold.

Bruce knelt there on the floor, his hands loose at his sides.  “I don’t…  Thank you?  I mean I don’t know if you should be using language like that…”

“Lucy?  Lucy, baby?  Where are you?”

A woman came around the corner of the aisle with a tote bag over one shoulder, carrying a bright red backpack, and Sam held his breath switching over to the alert button on his phone just in case the Hulk made an appearance.

“Are you… You’re not Dr. Banner, right?  You are.  Of course you are.  Lucy let go of the man.”

Bruce shuffled, managing to stand up carefully.  The little girl, Lucy, just tightened her grip and hung off of his neck like an awkward necklace.

“I’m sorry.  I didn’t –“

“Oh, I know,” the woman said, walking forward.  Together she and Bruce were able to loosen the little girl’s grip and she stepped back with Lucy perched, pouting, on her hip.  “I’m the one that should be sorry.  We saw you on the news and Lucy hasn’t talked about anything else.”

“Mommy,” Lucy said, “You too.  You said Hulk was badass.”

The woman blushed and Sam turned back to video.  He could probably get a new car out of Tony in exchange for this. 

“I’m so sorr—“  “No, no it’s fi-“  Both the woman and Bruce started and stopped speaking at the same time. 

Sam watched their silent courtesy conversation as they each half gestured for the other to speak and had mixed feelings.  He could jump in and give them a reprieve or he could wait to see exactly how long it would take both of their light pink blushes to turn flaming red.

The little girl, Lucy, broke through the staring match flailing her hands at the backpack her mother was holding.  “My picture.  Show the Hulk my picture.”

Her mother laughed and juggled the backpack open, pulling out a carefully folded piece of construction paper and holding it out.

Sam switched his camera back on and moved closer as the woman handed it to Banner.

Unfolded, it was a mass of crayoned scribbles  in the center a small one in shade of red and blue and flanking it a taller scribble in soft pink and another, larger and taller, in vibrant green. 

Sam leaned closer and smiled.  The green scribble had a pair of glasses painstakingly drawn onto it.

“See,” Lucy said, waving the paper.  “This is me and this is you and this is mommy and we are in the park.”

Banner smiled softly and accepted the piece of paper, lifting it up to his face and pushing his glasses higher on his nose.  

“This is a very good drawing, Lucy,” he said.  “You’re very talented.”

Lucy smiled and turned his face into her mother’s neck.  The woman smiled and nodded. 

“She probably draws you a picture once a week.  Ever since she – we – saw you on the news, I mean.  I must have about sixty of these at home.”

Sam looked from the woman to Banner and waited for one of them to speak but they stood silent again.

Taking pity on the scientist, Sam leaned forward.  “You know, if you guys wanted to go get a coffee or something…”

Sam stood back and watched the two blush and stutter.  He would have stayed out of it but he saw the way the woman, Leslie apparently, was looking at Banner and he didn’t see a ring on her finger. 

After a few false starts they made plans to meet for tea and Sam stood next to Banner as Lucy gave the doctor one more hug before she and her mother walked away.

“You didn’t need to set me up, you know,” Banner said softly.

“Hell yes I did,” Sam replied.  “I have perishables.  Tick tock.”

Banner laughed and the two of them made their way to the registers.

The tom kha kai was delicious.


End file.
